Don't forget to write
by Malkaviankitten7
Summary: Despite all Tony's efforts, Bruce won't stay after the battle with the Chitauri. Tony lets him go but only with the promise that he'll keep in touch and Stark is going to hold him to that promise. Prompted by ScienceBrosPrompts on Tumblr.


This was a response to ScienceBroPrompts over on Tumblr:

_Prompt #8 - Postcards_

_After the events of the movie, Tony drives Bruce to the airport, having had no luck convincing the man to stay. Bruce notices that after every stop he makes within an airport, essential items mysteriously make their way into his bag. As well, there is always a single post card addressed to Stark Tower. After receiving a few of these, one shows up with a message already written on it: "Send back blank if you want; just let me know you're there." Bruce then starts sending the post cards._

_+10 points if Bruce eventually starts writing on the postcards._

_+100 points if we get to see Tony's reaction to this._

_+100,000 points if we get to see Tony's reaction to Bruce sending one that reads, "Will be home soon."_

__I really like this prompt and figured I could take a break from banging my head against the keys for _More than you know_ (which I am still working on, but Natasha had to go all metaphoric on me and the words needed more work than usual.) This is just a quick one-shot. Not slash or even pre-slash necessarily, but definitely Science Bros.

Anyways, For Science!

* * *

"Glen Summers, huh?" Bruce asked as he inspected the passport on top the stack of documentation Stark handed him.

"Everything you'll need is in there. Passport, driver's license, birth certificate, vaccination and medical history, credit cards, the works." Tony seemed pleased with himself, which was a first in the past week.

When they'd first arrived at his labs, Tony had been counting on the top of the line, bleeding edge equipment and technology of his research and development labs to keep the doctor from going into hiding again. Admittedly, Bruce had been quite awestruck at first. Even working on the Super Soldier Serum project, he'd not had the kind of access these labs had. Of course, he should have expected Stark to have all the shiny new toys. It wouldn't have surprised Banner if Stark had a hand in inventing half of these beauties anyway.

The excitement lasted about a week, though, before the nightmares started back up. It was always the worst right after a big fight. Even having shifted willingly, even with all the praise, even with the official pardon, even knowing how many lives they'd save in this city alone, it wasn't enough. After the third night waking up in a sweat, pulse racing as he fought against the flood of anger and violence and primal instincts that accompanied the nightmares, Bruce made up his mind. He had to leave.

It wasn't like he had even told Stark he would stay. In fact, every time Tony brought it up, Bruce offered another couple days. He had always said he'd be leaving soon. But secretly, in the thoughts he dare not speak for fear of making them somehow more real, Bruce had considered staying, imagined what it would be like to work with another genius, someone who actually understood him, most importantly someone who wasn't afraid of him. Thoughts of how nice it would be to have a home, a career, a friend interrupted his meditations. Plans for projects and experiments that would take far longer than the few weeks he'd given Stark kept cropping up in the back of his mind and a few even made it onto paper which he promptly destroyed. He'd never admit it, but part of Bruce desperately wanted this to be possible.

He told Stark over breakfast after the third nightmare, told him he needed away from the city, away from people he could hurt. He needed to disappear and to get back to helping the world in the small ways that made him feel more human than he could here. The defeated look that passed across Tony's face for a split second almost changed Bruce's mind, but Stark covered it up almost immediately. He nodded and patted Bruce on the back, promising to help in anyway he could. Tony's mood had sombered though in the week leading up to his flight. Before he knew it, Bruce was holding a pack of documents granting him a new identity and plane tickets that would get him halfway across the globe.

"The cards are connected to one of my subsidiary companies where I've got Glen Summers listed as a field consultant. Most of the identification came from a friend in the FBI who owed me. It's the same sort of package they put together for witness protection but with a few added bonuses courtesy of Stark Industries. None of it can be traced back to you so if that prick Ross tries to come for you again despite the pardon, he won't have anything to go on." Tony explained with a smile that seemed just shy of happy.

Bruce skimmed through the paper work and managed a mild protest, "Tony, this is all too much." No one had ever done so much for him, especially not after the doctor decided to leave.

Stark put an arm around his shoulders and ignored Bruce's protests. "Keep safe and don't forget that you're always welcome back here, okay?"

Everyone else kept their distance. People didn't touch him. Tony Stark was not people, though. Tony wasn't afraid of the beast that rumbled under his skin. As much as Bruce appreciated someone finally seeing him as something beyond the monster, this was all the more reason why he had to leave. Stark's concern for self-preservation, or lack thereof, could not mix well with the Other Guy.

Bruce nodded and slid the documents into his bag. "Thank you."

"Oh and one more thing," Tony added as he turned to return to his car. "Drop me a postcard every now and then, will ya?"

Bruce laughed. One thing he had picked up very early on was Tony's complete disdain for physical paperwork. If it wasn't digital, it was a waste of his time. "Sure thing."

* * *

It wasn't until the first motel that Bruce got a hint that Tony may not have been joking. As he dug through his bag for his toothbrush, his fingers grazed something plastic he didn't recognized. He pulled the package out to find a shiny foil pack of dried blueberries. Bruce laughed softly, wondering when Tony had managed to stick that in there. He emptied the bag to see if Stark has slipped anymore surprises into his bag. Amidst his things, a single postcard slid out, already addressed to the Stark Tower. Given how much of a fuss Tony had put up about him coming to see the labs and insisting he could stay, Bruce was a little surprised. With a warm smile, he neatly repacked his things.

* * *

At the next airport, a supposedly routine stop by security had Bruce rooting through his bag for another form of ID. He startled when his fingers grazed something warm. The security guard eyed him oddly and asked him if he was alright. Bruce just nodded as he pulled out a hot foil wrapped roll. "Just lunch," he answered and handed over the birth certificate. While the guard inspected his papers, Bruce unfolded the foil, finding a shawarma and he had to stifle a laugh.

The guard gave him that odd look again, handing back the paperwork and motioning him forward. Bruce thanked him and returned to the gate to wait on his flight. Although he should have been concerned that someone had managed to get close enough to stick this in his bag, he couldn't help but appreciate the gesture. He'd been the only one of the group who really seemed to enjoy their after battle meal and though he expected that had more to do with the Hulk than himself, Tony took note of it, having them delivered multiple times during the doctor's brief stay in the tower.

He checked his bag while he ate and found another postcard, again addressed to Stark Tower. It struck him as a little odd that the postcard pictured Kakum National Park, one of the nearby attractions and yet the address seemed to be Tony's handwriting. Bruce glanced around, as if he expected Stark to be standing across the way, watching him. He realized quickly, just how ridiculous that was, laughed and shook his head. He added the new postcard to the other and finished his sandwich.

* * *

The next surprise showed up while Bruce departed a ship in Saõ Tomé. As he rummaged through his bag for money for lunch, the doctor mentally rehearsed in Portuguese. He stopped when the light reflected off something metal. Pulling out the tool, the doctor laughed hard and pushed the button producing a little _bzzt_ and a spark. When he settled down for lunch, he found a third postcard, this one picturing one of the local beaches. Like the others, it was already addressed in the same handwriting.

Although the boat leaving for the DRC was due soon, Bruce decided to take the advice as he saw it and take a walk down to the beach. Given the conflicted area he was about to head into, the relaxation of the ocean lapping at his feet and the calm of the fairly empty shore was exactly what he needed. Anyone else keeping such close tabs on him would have had Bruce a nervous wreck, running and hiding further, but for some reason, he found a strange comfort in knowing Tony was still looking out for him.

* * *

Bruce's arrival in the DRC was a bit rockier than his last three destinations but he had expected things would be rough there. Military men shuffled the passengers off the boat and quickly to a shelter, shouting orders in Lingala, which the doctor couldn't even hazard a guess at, and Swahili, which he managed to get a handful of words. From what he could gather, a group of LRA soldiers were attempting to take the port.

It was the conflict with the LRA that had brought Bruce to the DRC in the first place, though he'd hoped to provide medical services or similar humanitarian efforts. Yet, he found himself getting the attention of one of the men and asking in broken Swahili if he could help, intending aid of a completely different sort. When he finally got the man speaking French, a language he had a much better grasp on, the doctor explained that he could get one of the Avengers to help them. As soon as he made mention of Avengers, the man's face lit up and Bruce was escorted out of the shelter. The men stowed his bag away and Bruce let the Other Guy take over.

It wasn't long before Bruce came to, greeted with the profuse thanks of the locals. He scanned the area to find little damage and let out a heavy sigh. He'd have nightmares for weeks for sure, but knowing that he was able to help these people was worth it. For the first time, he knew he could trust the Hulk to help even without the team there to guide him. The realization was met with a low rumble from that far away corner of his mind where the Hulk rested.

The doctor gathered his things and headed toward the apartment he'd be staying in. When he arrived, he collapsed on the bed. Even when he willingly changed, the transformation took a lot out of him. He rummaged through his bag in hopes of finding something of substance. He was rewarded with a box of protein bars that he most certainly hadn't packed. Taped to the front of the box, a postcard stared back at him, depicting the smoking volcano of Mount Nyiragongo.

He ripped open one of the bars and flipped over the card. In addition to the address, a message was scribbled along the bottom that read: _Send back blank if you want; just let me know you're there._

"Huh."

The next morning, he packed his bag again and set out for the hike up the volcano.

* * *

Tony sat at his desk, nursing a glass of scotch and ignoring the phone. Bruce had reserved the apartment in DRC for three months and that had Stark in a much poorer mood than he'd be willing to admit. He'd really been enjoying this game, the new stealth settings on the suit proving to be quite useful for slipping little reminders into Banner's bag but all the previous stops had been quick, no more than a few days. It had taken all his self control, which Stark was notorious for having so very little of, to drop off the last present and leave. He caught wind of the skirmish and wanted to to help, if only because fighting by Bruce's side had been fantastic, another thought he wouldn't be admitting aloud.

Before he could get into too many more thoughts that would go unspoken, Tony was interrupted by his new PA entering the office.

"Not right now," he mumbled at whatever-her-name-was. Tony hadn't bothered learning the new PA's name, expecting she'd last about as long as the others. Pepper had been the only one to ever last but when they broke up, she insisted on some time away from SI, which was really just time away from Tony. He couldn't really blame her, even if it'd make it easier. Saving the world hadn't been enough because he almost died doing it. So long as he was in the hero business, Pepper couldn't handle being with him and, as much as he cared about her, Tony liked being Iron Man so much more than being himself.

So Pepper left. Bruce left. Everyone left in the end. His PA's frustrated voice pulled him from his thoughts as they took a turn for the self-destructive. "Mr. Stark, I was told that this particular matter was not to be put off."

Tony glared at the glass, refusing to look at whatever-her-name-was. "And who told you _that_?"

"_You_ did, Mr. Stark," she responded curtly and dropped something on his desk before storming out of the office, slamming the door behind her.

Tony turned to find a photo postcard sitting on his desk. He grabbed it quickly, setting the glass of scotch aside. In the photo, a group of hikers stood atop a mountain, Bruce smiling in the center of the group. Tony flipped over the card to find the doctor's messy handwriting: _Thanks for the travel suggestions. The hike up the volcano was great. Will be home soon._

Tony read and reread the short message several times, a wide grin pressing into his cheeks, before he noticed something. There was no postage on the card. He pressed the intercom to his PA.

"Yes, Mr. Stark?" she asked, her voice still sharp with frustration. Oh yeah, she wouldn't last til the end of the week.

"This card doesn't have any postage. How did it get here?" he asked.

"It was hand-delivered, Sir. I didn't catch the man's name. If it weren't for the nature of the letter, I'd have turned him away he was so ragged looking."

If she had continued beyond that, Tony missed it because he was already in his private elevator, asking Jarvis for the doctor's location. As the elevator opened to Bruce's floor, he wasted no time running to the bedroom and swinging the door open.

Bruce, wearing nothing but a towel and still dripping wet, startled as Tony rushed into the room and wrapped the doctor in his arms. Tony didn't speak, not quite trusting his voice. Bruce shifted to return his embrace and then spoke for them both, "It's good to be home."


End file.
